Traditional plant cultivation begins with planting a seed, sapling, or clone in soil in an outside environment or greenhouse. The plants grow by irrigating them and exposing them to sunlight. Although farmers and gardeners have for a long time been able to control the irrigation process when plants are grown in greenhouses, sunlight exposure is still very much up to Mother Nature. Even in outdoor environments, farmers rely on irrigation systems to ensure the plants receive the correct amount of water. Unpredictable conditions for cultivating plants is not optimal and often results in less than ideal cultivation results.
Throughout the 20th century, agriculturalists began developing methods of plant cultivation without soil. It was discovered that many plants can be grown with their roots exposed i.e., not planted in soil, as long as the roots are exposed to mineral nutrient solutions. Researchers learned that soil's only real purpose is to provide a structure in which a root system can form where nutrients can be held close to the plant roots. Early attempts at cultivating plants without soil replaced the soil with a water and nutrient solution. This type of cultivation is typically called hydroponic, although it is also sometimes referred to as aquaponic cultivation.
Plants grown in a soil-free environment tend to grow well and produce high yields because the plant roots have a constant supply of oxygen and may have access to as much or as little water as they need. Water in soil-free growing systems may also be reused continuously, thereby lowering water costs.
Existing soil-free plant cultivation systems offer significant limitations, however. In particular, hydroponic systems require large quantities of water to effectively replace the typical soil volume with a water and nutrient solution. A different byt related type of system is an aeroponic system, which is also soil-free. Aeroponic systems use mist to contact the plant roots in a grow chamber that is separate from a reservoir. The mist in a typical aeroponic system is fog-like, in that the droplets are very small.
Typical aeroponic systems are not self-contained, requiring external pumps, reservoirs, or other parts. In addition, typical high pressure aeroponic systems cannot maintain plant health in the event of component failure or power outages cost effectively. Existing solutions include, but are not limited to incorporating redundant pump components, back-up power sources, self-cleaning misting heads, and such, increasing costs. Additionally, due to those costs, typical high pressure aeroponic systems are solely designed for function and not visual appeal to the masses.
As such, there is a need for a self-contained system for growing and cultivating plants in a controlled environment using a minimal amount of water and at a reduced cost compared to existing aeroponic growing systems.